Application for New Students

Two years may seem like a long time, but these will be two very important years for you if you want to attend a 4-year college when you graduate from high school. Are you taking the right classes? Are you registering for, and preparing to take the right tests? Have you visited enough colleges to know what sort of school you’d like to attend? Have you and your parents talked about college costs and financial aid? There is much for you to do.

Would you like some help with all of this?

Each February, the college access mentoring program at Schurr, Bell Gardens, and Montebello High schools will accept a new group of tenth grade students to help them navigate the complexity of preparing for college. Known as College Bound Today, this college access program is sponsored by an organization called Creative Education Partners (CEP), a non-profit organization that works closely with the college counselors. CEP has had the active support of the Montebello Unified School District since 2008.

If you qualify to participate, you and a small group of other students will work with 2-3 volunteer mentors from the Los Angeles area who will help guide you through this complicated process. All of the mentors will be college graduates. These folks will meet with you regularly and be in touch with you frequently by e-mail or telephone to be sure that you are taking the steps needed to prepare for college (such as achieving good grades and meeting the “a-g” CSU/UC course requirements).

You will work with the same group of mentors for five semesters and maybe longer, meeting with them several times each semester on Saturday mornings. Between meetings, you will stay in frequent touch with your mentors. Each semester, the program will focus on a different theme that is part of the college admission and application process. And each semester will also feature a general meeting for all students, parents and mentors that will focus on the themes for that particular semester. If you want to apply for this program, please complete the student application below.

Due to the limited amount of spaces available for this program, applications will be accepted on a first come-first served basis. The application review process includes the following: ”a-g” courses completed with “C” or better semester grades, school attendance, extra-curricular activities, teachers comments, and other information that indicates your motivation towards a post-secondary education. If you have any further questions, please discuss them with your counselor.

The student application is available on the MUSD website, from grade level coordinators at each high school, or by contacting the college counselor at each high school.